


I just know it, at first glance I saw you.

by solis_occasum



Series: You're my missing puzzle piece [2]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Boys In Love, Developing Relationship, Feelings Realization, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Huang Ren Jun is Whipped, Huang Ren Jun-centric, Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, Lee Jeno is Whipped, Love Confessions, M/M, Na Jaemin is Whipped, Na Jaemin is a Confident Gay, Norenmin are soft, Polyamory, Soft Huang Ren Jun, Soft Lee Jeno, Soft Na Jaemin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 10:21:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,369
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28990632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solis_occasum/pseuds/solis_occasum
Summary: After spending an evening cuddling and falling asleep in each other's arms, Renjun wakes up and must confront his feelings for his two best friends.Or, norenmin are whipped.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno, Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin, Huang Ren Jun/Na Jaemin, Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin
Series: You're my missing puzzle piece [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2126664
Comments: 3
Kudos: 157





	I just know it, at first glance I saw you.

**Author's Note:**

> The sequel is here! Renjun realizes that he is very much in love.  
> No need necessarily to read the first one, but it's short and fluffy, so you might as well. Plus the context will make this make a bit more sense.
> 
> Enjoy :)

Renjun woke up feeling more comfortable than he thought possible. A delightful scent filled his nose and made his lips twitch up. It was vaguely citrusy and quite sweet, seeming to be coming from nearby. Inhaling he recognized it. Jeno. The boy had one of the most addicting natural scents. To smell it this strongly however, you need to be close.

There was another layer to the scent, lavender. Pairing perfectly with the sweet citrus was that calming lavender. Jaemin. Renjun felt perfectly relaxed and content surrounded by the two boys, feeling completely engulfed by their presence. 

The warm weight across his ribs was slowly becoming uncomfortably heavy. Shifting slightly, he felt something tighten around him. Jaemin’s arm was slung across him, hand clasped around his waist in protest to the movement. Jeno’s hand was wrapped around Jaemin’s forearm, caging Renjun in even more securely. 

Renjun huffed from where his head lay on Jeno’s chest. His upper half was trapped completely by the lanky boys, and the three of them had managed to tangle their legs together quite efficiently.

They had gone to bed not long after the sun had set, that was to say, early. Light was currently streaming through the curtains, brightening the room up in an afternoon glow. This was the longest any of them had slept in ages. Knowing this, there was no way Renjun would wake Jeno and Jaemin up. He had taken a nap earlier and felt wide-awake, but the other two probably needed all the extra minutes they could get.

He really had nothing left to lose. Relaxing, he snuggled closer to Jeno’s chest and found Jaemin’s hand with his. Now that he was absurdly comfortable, it was time for the over thinking to start. This had to mean something. Friends don’t cuddle like this. Friends don’t call each other pet names seriously. Friends don’t only feel complete when they’re together. Friends don’t look at each other like they hold the world in their eyes. 

Renjun had been so antsy, and being with Jeno and Jaemin had helped him so quickly. His heart had raced every time they called him nicknames, or looked at him fondly. The whole evening had him feel like his heart was swelling and his face was on fire. He had felt so loved. That was not how friends felt. 

The three of them hadn’t even always been this close. Jeno and Jaemin had entered the company on the same day and been attached at the hip ever since. They could finish each other’s thoughts and frequently moved perfectly in sync. When Renjun joined them, they had gotten along well enough. They were all the same age and clearly had interests in common, but Jeno and Jaemin already had each other. When Jaemin went on hiatus Renjun really got to know Jeno. He discovered that the other boy was caring and sweet, always making sure those around him were comfortable. He knew when someone needed something and would take care of it without saying a word. Selfless idiot.

Jaemin had been around then, just less. When he was fully back he gravitated immediately back to Jeno, to no one’s surprise, only this time Renjun was by Jeno’s side. Jaemin was adamant that Renjun could join them every time they hung out. He was invited on bike rides, shopping trips, lunches out, visits to cat cafes, and even long drives back home. 

Visiting China wasn’t easy. Renjun did get to see his family, but it was most frequently over a video call. He was glad they could still connect often, but he did miss that warm homey feel that stepping into his front door brought. When Jaemin had asked if Renjun wanted to come with him the next time he went home he had hesitated. Sure he spent a lot of time with the younger boy, but this would be such an imposition. Jaemin had already let his nice side win when letting Renjun butt his way into an already perfect friendship, there was no way he really wanted him spending time with his parents, and taking up space in his childhood home.

Jeno had clearly seen how homesick he had been getting however and practically threatened Renjun to accompany Jaemin. In hindsight he was glad Jeno had done that. Jaemin’s family was lovely. Just like him they were kind and went out of their way to make sure he was comfortable. Jaemin had even gone to the trouble of getting his parents in contact with Renjun’s so that his favourite meals could be provided. Renjun had spent a lot of time holding back happy tears that night.

Now, a few years later, the three of them were close, but Jeno and Jaemin were still closer. Their relationship was clearly more than friendship, and Renjun could never hope for the same. Wait… was that what he wanted? 

The panic was rising. Friends didn’t think about this. Friends…

Renjun did not want to be friends. Oh no. He wanted to sit watching a movie with their legs pressed together and fingers intertwined. He wanted to go to them and have them come to him when they needed something. He wanted to visit their parents and get shown baby pictures. He wanted to call his mom and tell her all about how romantic his two boys were. His two boys…

This was bad. This was terrible. He was ruining everything. There was absolutely no way Jeno and Jaemin felt the same way. He had long suspected that maybe they truly did have something more between them, but that made it all the more off limits. This was a train of thought he had never allowed himself to go down before, and for good reason. This could only lead to disaster.

Cutting through the growing anxiety, Jeno woke up. Making the most adorable confused noise he looked first across at the also waking Jaemin, and then down to Renjun. Obviously he looked to Jaemin first. How stupid Renjun had been to ever think differently. Jeno must be disgusted. He had to be. 

Renjun pushed himself up slowly, gently sliding Jaemin’s arm off of him. He scooted forward, looking for a quick escape. He only got about a foot when Jeno’s leg jutted out to stop him.

“Injunnie, where are you going?” Jeno asked, pouting.

Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god. What should he even say? No way he could tell Jeno he was in the middle of panicking about maybe being in love with his two best friends… that he had just been cuddling with.

Clearly he had been silent too long.

“Come back,” Jaemin’s voice was scratchy, sending shivers down Renjun’s spine, “you can’t just sneak away.” Well… that was his plan foiled. “What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?” Jaemin continued.

There was no getting out of this one. He stayed quiet, completely at a loss for what to do.

“We’re not going to have to go back to square one are we?” Jeno said teasingly. “I thought we were clear last night about communication. You don’t need to bottle it all up.”

Jaemin slid a hand onto his knee, “there’s nothing you can’t talk to us about.” Jaemin just had to be so sweet, even while Renjun was internally screaming that he shouldn’t be.

“It’s nothing, really,” Renjun said, still desperately looking for an escape. He clearly wasn’t convincing; they were both frowning at him.

“Sweetheart, really. Anything. You can talk to us about anything.”

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place, or maybe just a Jaemin and a Jeno. He could lie straight to their faces and feel guilty about it forever, or he could tell them exactly what he had been thinking about and risk having them never speak to him again. Be guilty or lose them? What a choice to make.

Renjun had sat there over thinking for so long that he didn’t even register his eyes welling up with tears or Jeno’s hand rubbing his back comfortingly. They were just so perfect. Even in a moment like this they were worried about him, supportive when he was about to ruin it all. The dam broke. Tears slowly spilled from his eyes and silent sobs racked his body. Renjun was ripping apart from the seams. 

During his breakdown they were there. Renjun cried quietly, looking down at the bed and curling into himself. Jaemin slowly reached out and pulled the smaller boy against him, Jeno’s hand on his back following. Yet again, the three of them were wrapped up together.

Not being too much of a crier, it didn’t take long for Renjun’s tears to run dry. He felt raw and helpless. Yet, through it all Jeno and Jaemin stayed. The comforted him and didn’t pry. He loved them. Oh god, he loved them.

At this point he was nearly hysterical, face tear streaked, hiccupping wet breathes. He ripped off the Bandaid.

“I love you.”

And then he waited. Waited for the other shoe to drop, and the two boys to leave him there, disgusted by his words. He waited for the admission that they were already together and there was no place for him, the denial that they just didn’t feel the same.

Instead Jeno’s hand continued to rub his back and Jaemin held him tighter. 

“We know, Baby,” Jaemin said, “we know.”

Oh. Well, maybe they thought he meant like a friend or a brother, or that he only liked one of them, or that-

“We love you too.”

Oh. He looked up at Jeno first, as he had said it back. His eyes were crinkled, his whole face smiling. Looking over to Jaemin, his expression mirrored Jaemin’s. They both looked so happy.

“Look, we thought we were all on the same page, but we clearly weren’t,” Jaemin said.

“Jaeminnie and I talked about it a little while ago… we should have included you in that conversation,” Jeno mumbled, sounding a bit guilty.

“The point is Injunnie, Jeno and I feel the same way.”

“And,” Jeno interjected, “we should probably have a real conversation about what that means.”

That was a lot. They loved him. They both loved him. Jeno and Jaemin, the two most perfect boys loved him, felt the same way he did. Oh, but this meant he’d have to say more…

“I… uh… I wasn’t really expecting that. I don’t know what to say,” Jeno’s hand rubbed his back reassuringly.

“Why don’t I start?” Jaemin asked. They both nodded for him to continue. “I think I fell for Jeno the moment I met him. I didn’t know it at the time, but the reason we stuck so closely together was because I just couldn’t stand to see him with anyone else,” Jaemin paused to laugh. “When I came back after my hiatus I really realized what it all meant. I also realized that no, I wasn’t jealous of Renjun for spending all that time with him, I just felt left out. There was never really a moment when I decided I liked either of you, I just kind of always did.”

“I guess I’m mostly the same,” Jeno started, already sounding nervous and blushing. “Jaemin was just always there… and then so was Renjun. I remember meeting you both. Jaemin was this adorable little boy that immediately made my heart flutter. He was so kind, and he felt like home. Renjun was so tiny. He was shy and snarky and scared. I wanted to just drop everything and protect him. I followed him around like a lost puppy, because I didn’t want to let him out of my sight. There was a long time where I pretended this all meant nothing, but Jaemin confronted me a few months ago.” Jeno turned to Jaemin, gesturing for him to take over.

“I could tell he was pining. We were all in the living room, and Injunnie, you were cuddled up with Donghyuckie.” Renjun blushed. They really had been watching. “Jeno was sitting next to me, and I could just feel him staring at you. After everyone else left, I just asked. I said, ‘Jeno, are you in love with Renjun?’ and before he could even answer I added on ‘because I am too.’” Jaemin was grinning telling the story. “He said yes. Well, he stuttered and started turning beet-red, but I took it as a yes. Since then we just… turned it up.”

“You’ve really both liked me that long?” Renjun asked, dumbfounded.

“Yeah Baby, we have,” said Jeno.

“Uh… well, I guess I should tell you everything too.”

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” ah Jaemin, ever the perfect gentleman. Renjun shook his head.

“I want to.” He took Jeno and Jaemin’s hands in his. “One day I walked into a new building, one that I would be spending a lot of time in. As soon as I entered the room, I saw the two most perfect people. These two boys were sitting together looking at a phone. I decided right then and there that we would be friends. I tried not to impose myself in their friendship, but they were amazing. One day one of them had to go away, so I started getting closer and closer to the other boy. All th time we spent time together; I felt so guilty. I was imposing. Then he came back, and instead of accusing me of stealing his best friend, he just asked me to join them. Every time. They were so perfect, are so perfect. They make me feel safe. And I love them both.” 

Renjun finished and looked up to find both boys tearing up, smiles intact. He squeezed their hands.

“I love you, Jeno,” he said, looking the boy in the eyes. “And I love you, Jaemin.” He turned his head to look at the other. 

With matching grins on their faces, and watery eyes the two of them spoke in sync “I love you, Renjun.”

Renjun took a deep breath, letting the citrus and lavender scents soothe him as he squeezed the two hands in his.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for all the love and support! Yet again, I edited this myself, so there are probably a few mistakes.  
> Constructive feedback appreciated!
> 
> I would like to make this a series of one-shots. If you have suggestions or prompts I would love to hear them! Leave a comment, or send an anonymous message on my tellonym https://tellonym.me/solis_occasum  
> :)


End file.
